sallying from their towns along the southern shores of Italy, carried slaughter and dismay to the tents of the chiefs of the Norman invaders.
But three years afterwards, their indefatigable duke (Robert Guiscard) resumed the design of his eastern conquests; preferring, on this occasion, as the season was far advanced, the harbour of Brundusium to the open road of Otranto for the assembling of his fleet of one hundred and twenty vessels. However, in the interval Alexius, the emperor, had assiduously laboured to restore the naval forces of the empire, obtaining at the same time, at an exorbitant price, the aid from the republic of Venice of thirty-six transports, fourteen galleys, and nine galiots, or ships of unusual strength and magnitude. The goods and merchandise of the rivals of the Venetians at Amalfi were taxed to raise the required sum; and by granting special privileges, such as the licence or monopoly of trade in the port of Constantinople, with the gift of many shops and houses, Alexius propitiated the good will of the Venetian merchants. But this expedition was so far successful, that the Normans captured and destroyed many of the vessels of the combined fleets; it failed, however, to take Constantinople, against which the Normans relinquished any attempts worthy of notice after the death in the following year of their prince, Guiscard.
Rise of Venice. While the power and name of the Romans was passing away under the imbecile rule of the Greek emperors, and commerce and navigation shared in the general decay, a new maritime power, the State of Venice, destined to become the greatest of the Italian republics, was imperceptibly increasing
